The Colombian goverment is willing to break the law in order to seek the re-election of President Alvaro Uribe, presidential candidate Rafael Pardo said Monday.
Earlier that day, Interior and Justice Minister Fabio Valencia Cossio had said that Uribe will be able to announce his candidacy for the 2010 elections at any time and is not obliged to do this before December 1, which at the current time is the legal deadline for the President to announce his bid.
According to the Minister, the law that is currently being reviewed by the Constitutional Court, will allow Uribe to run as soon as the Court approves the bill, disregarding the current deadline.
Pardo, a candidate for the Colombian Liberal Party, suggested that Cossio would be prepared to "invent" ways to ensure that Uribe was able to run for President and he was quoted saying of Cossio, that "this is exactly in his nature, he will do everything possible, both legally and illegally to accomplish his purpose," claimed a report by news station W Radio.
Cossio rejects the criticism and told newspaper El Espectador that the constitution allows that the Head of State can decide for himself when to announce his candidacy.
"Only after both the Court and the population decide, will the President decide whether he wishes to re-run for a third term in office," stated Cossio.
The Constitutional Court will not rule on a bill calling for a referendum on the constitutional change needed for Uribe to run for a second consecutive term in office before mid-January, the court earlier announced. The elections themselves are held in May.
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